Kailash Sirohiya
Kailash Sirohiya is a Nepali media executive and chairman of Kantipur Media GroupKantipur Media GroupKantipur Media Group (KMG) is a Nepali media group that grew out of Kantipur Publications, founded in 1993; its outlets include the Nepali-language daily Kantipur, the English daily The Kathmandu Post, Radio Kantipur and Kantipur Television, and it calls itself Nepal’s largest media conglomerate.Open the full entry. In 2001, as managing director of Kantipur Publications, he was arrested and faced sedition charges over an article in the group’s newspaper; in 2024 he was arrested over a complaint alleging multiple citizenships and released after nine days.
Contents10 sections
Key facts
June 6, 2001Arrested
On June 6, 2001, the Kantipur daily ran an article by Maoist leader Baburam Bhattarai challenging official accounts of the palace massacre; that evening Sirohiya, editor Yubaraj Ghimire and a third executive were arrested, and on June 15 they were released and ordered to face sedition charges.[1]
February 2020Announces a Change of Editor at The Kathmandu Post
In February 2020 Sirohiya, then chairman and managing director of Kantipur Media Group, announced that group management had accepted Anup Kaphle’s resignation as editor-in-chief of The Kathmandu PostThe Kathmandu PostThe Kathmandu Post is an English-language daily newspaper in Nepal, launched in February 1993 and published by Kantipur Media Group; it describes itself as Nepal’s first private-run English-language broadsheet.Open the full entry and named Sanjeev Satgainya editor.[2]
April 28, 2024Citizenship Complaint
On April 28, 2024, a branch committee member of the Rastriya Swatantra Party filed a complaint accusing Sirohiya of holding multiple citizenships. KMG outlets had earlier published articles alleging that the party’s leader, Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane, misappropriated cooperative funds.[3]
In an earlier statement Sirohiya alleged that Lamichhane was behind the complaint in order to stop news about the cooperative fraud and divert attention, and said he had done nothing wrong.[4]
May 7, 2024Petitions the Supreme Court
On May 7, 2024, Sirohiya went to the Supreme Court against police attempts to arrest him; the petition was not heard after the court called both sides to discuss an interim order. On May 21 he filed a writ petition seeking to revoke the Dhanusha District Court’s permission to arrest him, naming the Ministry of Home Affairs, Police Headquarters and the Dhanusha District Police Office; it was not registered after submission.[5]
May 21, 2024Arrested
On May 21, 2024, the Dhanusha District Court issued an arrest warrant, and that evening a Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office team led by SSP Sanu Ram Bhattarai arrested Sirohiya at the group’s office in Thapathali; he was then handed to the Dhanusha District Police Office for investigation.[4]
CPJ program director Carlos Martinez de la Serna said the arrest “appears to be an effort to muzzle the critical reporting.”[3]
May 22, 2024Court Allows Three Days of Custody
On May 22, 2024, the bench of Dhanusha District Judge Chudaman Khadka allowed police to hold Sirohiya for three days; police, through the District Government Attorney’s Office, had sought five days.[6]
May 29, 2024Released
While in custody Sirohiya was hospitalised with heart and high blood pressure problems and on May 28 was flown by helicopter to Kathmandu for treatment; the Dhanusha District Court had extended the investigation period a third time. On May 29, nine days after his arrest, he was released on his own recognizance on condition that he appear when summoned by police.[7]
Ranjan Awal, spokesperson of the Dhanusha District Police Office, said the District Attorney’s Office had decided his detention was not needed for further investigation; he would report to the District Police Office, Lalitpur, if the investigation required.[8]
As of October 2026: Chairman of the Group
As of October 2026, the masthead of The Kathmandu Post lists Sirohiya as chairman and Swastika Sirohiya as director.[9]
Related Organizations, Websites, and Public Accounts
Kantipur Media Group: Official website: https://kmg.com.np/ (opens in a new window)[10]
Sources
- Attacks on the Press 2001: Nepal (opens in a new window)
- Sanjeev Satgainya appointed new editor of The Kathmandu Post (opens in a new window)
- Chair of Nepal’s largest media group arrested after publication of reports alleging fraud (opens in a new window)
- KMG Chairman Kailash Sirohiya arrested from his office (opens in a new window)
- Kailash Sirohiya appeals to SC against arrest warrant (opens in a new window)
- Police permitted to detain Sirohiya for 3 days (opens in a new window)
- KMG Chairman Sirohiya released on his own recognizance (opens in a new window)
- Sirohiya released on deed of guarantee (opens in a new window)
- Masthead (opens in a new window)
- Leadership - Kantipur Media Group (opens in a new window)